The remains of a micro-continent scientist call Mauritia might be
preserved under huge amounts of ancient lava beneath the Indian Ocean, a
new analysis of island sands in the area suggests. These findings hint that such micro-continents
may have occurred more frequently than previously thought, the
scientists who conducted the study, detailed online Feb. 24 in the
journal Nature Geoscience, say. Researchers analyzed sands from
the isle of Mauritius in the western Indian Ocean. Mauritius is part of a
volcanic chain that, strangely, exists far from the edges of its
tectonic plate. In contrast, most volcanoes are found at the borders of
the tectonic plates that make up the surface of the Earth.

Isn't that wild?

What's the wildest thought you have on news like that?

I'll share mine.

What if Mauritia contained an advanced civilization? What if they had all the things we have now in terms of science and technology and what if then they just ceased to be?

Is it Spengler who had all of human history rising and falling in a day? I don't know. But think of Sisyphus and the metaphor with that story.

He pushes the rock up the hill all day and then, as the day is ending and he's almost up the hill, the rock rolls back down.

Sometimes, I wonder if that's really what civilization is like?

If we haven't had civilizations burst to a zenith -- maybe even more advanced than we are -- only to die out over and over again.

And if it did happen, there would be a reason for the dying out. So would our government tell us? Or would it fear that we'd panic if we knew, for example, 'we're two steps away from hitting the point where all civilizations die out!'

Monday, February 25, 2013. Chaos and violence continue, Nouri's forces
tried to provoke a gunfire exchange with a governor's security detail,
the UN notes how bad things are getting in Iraq (finally), the UN's
Martin Kobler has many visits with different officials, violence
continues, protests are held in support of Bradley Manning, and more.

All Iraq News reports
that various leaders in and members of Iraqiya reported to Deputy Prime
Minister Saleh al-Mutlaq's office today for a meet-up to address "the
political situation in Iraq and the file of the current
demonstrations." Iraqiya is a political slate headed by Ayad Allawi.
Along with Allawi, prominent members include Speaker of Parliament Osama
al-Nujaifi and Saleh al-Mutlaq. One prominent member is the country's
Vice President Tareq al-Hashemi; however, al-Hashemi wasn't present
since Nouri ran him out of the country early last year with charges of
'terrorism.' Iraqiya is a non-sectarian slate. It came in first in the
March 20120 elections besting Nouri's own State of Law political
slate. A statement from al-Mutlaq notes that Allawi called the meeting
and stressed "the importance of answering the demonstrators' demands."

The demonstrators and their demands become more important each week as their numbers grow. Friday,
Iraq saw massive demonstrations in the ongoing protests with
participants number over 3 million -- especially amazing in a country
where that would make an estimated 10% of the population. The BRussells Tribunal and Iraqi Spring Media Center offer two photo essays -- here and here -- on Fridays' demonstrations.

Nouri
has his own way of not ignoring the protesters: He spies on them. And
Friday, Nouri's forces were taping the protesters. This happened in
2011 as
well. And then the protesters began to be targeted not at the protests,
but at their homes. The photo is from Iraqi Spring Media Center. Zarzis Thomas (Al Mada) reported
Saturday about the Friday Mosul protest where complaints about the
treatment of the protesters reached Governor
Atheel al-Nujaifi who went down to the square to find out what was going
on. Protesters
reported that they were being arrested and harassed. al-Nujaifi took
down the names of protesters said to have been arrested so his office
could follow up. When he was
leaving, the governor reports that federal police (they are controlled
by
Nouri al-Maliki) attempted to attack his car and his security detail to
provoke them into exchanging gun fire. He states the federal police
deliberately attempted to create a crisis, deliberately attempted an
attack on a sitting governor. In addition, Tigris Operation Command
(Nouri's force) -- specifically Brigades 46 and 47 -- continue to do
house raids in the area.

Nouri's forces attempted to provoke
the security detail for the governor of the province into an exchange of
gun fire. You would think this would result in some outcry. Instead,
in a sign of just how bad things are in Iraq, it barely registers.

National Iraqi News Agency quoted
Iraqiya MP Hassan al-Jubouri condemning actions taken Saturday in Mosul, "The Third
Army Division in Mosul has shut down the Square protest and blocked
access in and out and cut the power, prevented the media from covering
the events, and the purpose of this measure is an attempt to get the
protesters out of their peaceful protest ."

That action and the
incident with Governor Atheel al-Nujaifi may have prompted today's
Iraqiya meet-up (Atheel al-Nujaifi is a member of Iraqiya and the
brother of Speaker of Parliament Osama al-Nujaifi). It may also be
behind the United Nations sudden desire for meet-ups in Iraq. National Iraq News Agency reports
that the UN Secretary-General's Special Envoy to Iraq Martin Kobler
met with the Iraqi Minister of Finance Rafie al-Issawi Sunday to
discuss various issues. al-Issawi, a member of Iraqiya, states, "the demands of the demonstrators and the
importance of meeting them by the government because they are legitimate
and constitutional demands." Yesterday, Alsumaria noted
that Speaker of Parliament Osama al-Nujaifi met with Kobler to discuss the crack down on the
protesters and the harassment. Anadoln Agency adds, "In a written
statement on Sunday, Kobler noted that his meeting with al-Nujaifi
covered the issues of human rights and the emergency situation in Iraq." All Iraq News notes that Kobler met with Nouri today. Also today, they note, US Ambassador to Iraq Stephen Beecroft met with Ruz Mahdi Shawis.

The protests were discussed on this week's Cindy Sheehan's Soapbox as Cindy spoke with Iraq War veteran Ross Caputi and with Dr. Dahlia Wasfi. Wasfi and Caputi are with The Justice for Fallujah Project. Excerpt.Cindy
Sheehan: So, Dahlia, I want to ask you this. Of course, we are
supposed to praise Obama because he ended the war in Iraq. And part of
the problem is that he got a Nobel Peace Prize and people think he's
anti-war because he called the war in Iraq "stupid" -- even though he
said he's not against war. So what -- you're Iraqi-American, you have
family there. What is your sense of where Iraq stands today?

Dr.
Dahlia Wasfi: Well I'm -- I'm watching from a distance and I would
sort of I think is a reflection of the repression has continued and
worsened today in Iraq is that I can't talk politics with my cousins out
of fear of anybody listening to the conversations and that there would
be repercussions for them because of it. But I think, uhm, yes,
technically, there was an official troop withdrawal in 2011 but this
does not include the thousands who remain -- US military personnel who
remain behind to protect at least the US Embassy. And then there are
thousands of mercenaries. And, by my estimations, its the CIA
administrators operating out of the Embassy and I'm not sure how many
they have -- involving themselves in government affairs and civil
affairs in Iraq today. But what we can see now is our legacy from the
invasion and occupation -- with the government that came to power during
our occupation -- is that these unbelievable degrees of repression --
including arbitrary detentions, torture, rape -- this is ongoing for
Iraqi society. And this is what the demonstrations in Iraq are about
today. Now, of course, the mainstream media tells us a story that,
'Well this is a Shia government and these are Sunni who are upset with
that and so they are rejecting the Shi'ite government.' But from all
the news that I'm getting on the ground that this is -- and they put the
signs in English for western media that say, 'We are against
sectarianism. We reject the tyranny of this government. We reject Nouri
al-Maliki. And there's no sectarianism, this is unity.' And also as a
result of our invasion, religious groups and their militias that were
based in Iran crossed over into Iraq, especially southern Iraq, in the
earlier years -- 2003, 2004, 2005 -- and became dominant in the south.
And what also happened was under our control of the Ministry of
Interior, Ministry of Defense, we installed individuals who would
orchestrate the death squads in Iraq. And these individuals like Bayan
Jabr also was from Iran, originallly Iraq but was from Iran and was
actually a high ranking member, high ranking official of the Bard
Brigades. So the structure that is in place in Iraq today is absolutely
-- They call it the second part of the occupation. Iraqis know exactly
what is going on and they are fighting once again to have their --
basically to have their sovereignty. So this is the legacy that
continue today. Most -- most of the west, as far as I can tell, is
turning a blind eye to it. But this is a real liberation movement. You
can call this a liberation movement. And meanwhile the US
administration continues to deal arms with the Iraqi government. So
it's same-old-same-old. This is very comparable to the relationship
that the United States had with Saddam during the 1980s. And I believe
that when Nouri al-Maliki no longer satisfies our agenda in the area
then we will have to "liberate" Iraq again. So we'll see what happens.
But the people, their slogan is "NO RETREAT." And they have endured
enough and are willing to-to -- They have bled for their future in the
past.

The plight of women detainees was the starting point for the mass
protests that have spread through many Iraqi provinces since 25 December
2012. Their treatment by the security forces has been a bleeding wound –
and one shrouded in secrecy, especially since 2003. Women have been
routinely detained as hostages – a tactic to force their male loved ones
to surrender to security forces, or confess to crimes ascribed to them.
Banners and placards carried by hundreds of thousands of protesters
portray images of women behind bars pleading for justice.

"We transferred all women prisoners to prisons in their home provinces."

Al-Shahristani's
statement is one in a long list of contradictory and misleading
statements by the regime's most senior officials – from al-Maliki
speaking of "not more than a handful of women terrorists", to his
contradictory promise that he will pardon all "women detainees who have
been arrested without a judicial order or in lieu of a crime committed
by some of their male relatives". That assurance was followed by
parading nine women, cloaked in black from head to toe, on the official
state TV channel, al-Iraqiya, as a gesture of the regime's "good will".Protesters
and Iraqi human rights organizations estimate that there are as many as
5,000 female detainees. The truth is leaking out, drip by drip. A few
weeks ago, 168 women detainees were released and there were promises of
another 32 waiting to be released. No one accused of torture, rape or
abuse has yet been brought to justice.

Drip by drip. Now if
only the western media could pick up on it? Instead of avoiding this
issue which is at the heart of the protests but never makes it into the
wire reports. It shouldn't be that hard to note this reality. In a column for Al Quds (in Arabic), Haifa Zangana ends
by noting that the Iraqi Spring began with protests against the prison
rapes in Mosul and Anbar Province and that the protests are only
becoming more popular because their demands strike a common thread.
Bie Kentane (BRussells Tribunal) observes,
"Women prisoners have been subjected to torture by electrocution,
beatings, and rape by the investigators during interrogation. Often
they were arrested instead of their husbands. Some of the women have no
idea why they were arrested and imprisoned for many years. Some of the
inmates' children were born in prisons. Have a look at these revealing
videos. This horrendous situation has been created by the US
occupation and is continuing under Maliki's puppet government."

Saturday, NINA reported
Nouri al-Maliki declared he would ask the judiciary to condemn (that would
be a death sentence) "anyone who talks in sectarianism." Sunday, Kitabat reported
that Anbar Province's Sheikh Ahmed Abu Risha has responded that the
person resorting to sectarian talk is Nouri al-Maliki himself. Oudai Hatem (Al-Hayat via Al-Monitor) also speaks with Sheikh Abu Risha:
Abu Risha called on Maliki to “sue himself since he is the main
promoter of sectarianism and the reason behind the escalating tension in
the country.”
Abu Risha was referring to the statements Maliki made two days ago, in
which he threatened to sue “promoters of sectarianism,” accusing some
countries, without specifying names, of “entrenching sectarianism in
Iraq.”
Regarding the extension of the mandatory vacation of al-Iraqiya List
ministers, Abu Risha considered that the “participation of al-Iraqiya
ministers in the government will transform them into false witnesses;
therefore, I call upon them to withdraw from the government. There’s no
point in maintaining their participation.”
Information sources closely tied to the prime minister’s office have
revealed that “Maliki has issued a decision to extend the mandatory
vacation of al-Iraqiya ministers who boycotted the session for another
month.”
Abu Risha denied forming a delegation to negotiate with the government,
stressing that “the demands have been handed to the government since
the first days of demonstrations. Sending more delegations will be in
vain; the protests will continue until the government fulfills the demands.”

When
he should be dealing with the above, Nouri is instead jotting down to
southern Iraq yesterday for an unneeded event/facility. Al Rafidayn reports
he went to Basra for the Sports City opening. Iraqis need potable
water and dependable electricity, the need a strong rations program, a
program that cares for widows and children. We noted this earlier in
the month but, again, Iraqi Women Platform For Lasting Peace has called
for unity. UNAMI notes this statement from the group:

We urge the women of Iraq, mothers and wives from all across the
country, to speak with one powerful voice from now on against violence
and violations. We
are Iraqi Women Members of Parliament, and in order to ensure a bright
future for the men and women of Iraq, we proclaim that we want no part
in the loss of more lives and shedding of more blood. On behalf of the
women seeking stability and justice in the country, we declare that only
through peace can Iraq be built.
The crisis appears to be complicated, with many parties involved, but
we all believe that Iraqi leaders - both women and men - are capable of
resolving the crisis and tackling its reasons wisely and consciously.
We reject violence in all its forms. We condemn terrorism and
murders all over Iraq. We assert the constitutional rights of the people
in peaceful demonstrations. And we further assert the responsibility of
the armed forces in protecting the demonstrators and respecting their
legitimate prospects.
We express our willingness in active, serious actions: meeting with the
demonstrators, listening to the citizens, communicating the demands and
institutionalizing and reforming the political and development
processes.

We will keep claiming: peace and security for our country. Peace and security for our country.

Again, while he can't address the needs of the Iraqi people, he can rush down to Basra for Sports City.

As we noted this morning, Nadir
Dendoune, who holds dual Algerian and Australian citizenship was
covering Iraq for the fabled French newspaper Le Monde's monthly
magazine. His assignment was to document Iraq 10 years after the start
of the Iraq War. Alsumaria explains
the journalist was grabbed by authorities in Baghdad last week for the
'crime' of taking pictures. (Nouri has imposed a required permit,
issued by his government, to 'report' in Iraq.) All Iraq News adds the journalist has been imprisoned for over a week now without charges.

February 14th, it was announced he was released. KUNA reports
that today the French Foreign Minister in Paris met with Iraq's
Ambassador and, according to spokesperson Philippe Lalliot, they
discussed the fact that Nadir remains detained.

We're covering the design
issue because there were 18 e-mails in Arabic to the public account on
the fashions and on the fact that Arab designers were worn. So good for
Eli Saab, Reem Acra and Zuhair Murad. We're noting the Argo because it
is in the Iraqi media. I have not taken a stand on Argo. I
know Ben, he's a great director and I'm very happy for him. We're
noting what Iraq media is reporting Iranian media is stating. I'm not
attempting to be like the idiot Ed Rampell whose latest garbage for The Progressive is offensive.
Is there a reason, Rampell, other than sexism to mention Shirley
Bassey's age? Sean Connery's age isn't mentioned -- no one's age is.
The rude remarks about Jennifer Garner? We've called out Alias -- Ava
and I have criticized Alias many times including for its Deanna Durbin 100 Men And A Girl cast -- for many things but seven years later we're really not
ridiculing Jennifer Garner for playing a spy. Nor are we surprised that
spies are staples of film. We're not surprised that hookers are
either. That Rampell sees a conspiracy that goes all the way back to
James Bond's Dr. No? He's a little crazy and not just sexist. And did Tom Hayden really tell Rampell this:

Ironically, another of the evening’s award presenters was that icon of
the Hollywood Left, two-time Oscar winner Jane Fonda, Hayden’s former
wife. As the Chicago Seven alum told The Progressive, “the CIA had files
on both of us,” because of the couple’s activism and, presumably,
Fonda’s influence in movies, with films such as 1979’s anti-nuclear “The
China Syndrome” and the 1978 antiwar feature “Coming Home” and the
suppressed 1972 anti-Vietnam War documentary “FTA.”

First, it's cute the way he leaves out 9 to 5 -- which is a very
political film and grossed more than all three of the ones he lists.
On-site day care, flexible shifts, equal access to training and
promotion, etc. -- it's not just a funny film, it's probably Jane's
most political film.

Second, it was the Justice Department that kept the most files on Jane Fonda.
They spied on her illegally. She sued and -- in what she called a
moral victory -- in 1979 they promised never to spy on an American
citizen without cause (then they got The Patriot Act and it no longer
mattered apparently). But Jane brought her lawsuit -- Tom didn't sue --
after reporter Jack Anderson passed on some things to her. I bring
that up because we're talking 1974. Now surely the CIA did spy on her.
And maybe they even did so after 1974. I've never heard that charge
made. It seems
really dumb because you didn't need to pay rats and creeps to attend her
speeches by the second half of the seventies -- she and Tom were on
Meet The Press discussing the dangers of nuclear power plants. It seems
really dumb to do so when you're dealing with someone who is suing one
agency already. It seems really dumb when you're dealing with someone
who is largely in the US by that point. For the record, the FBI is
known to have spied on Fonda as was Defense Dept intelligence --
military intelligence and by the IRS. The last one opened an
investigation into her and others working with GI resistance -- GI
Coffee Houses, etc. I don't know why Rampell is emphasizing CIA over
the rest other than he probably doesn't know what he's talking about.
All the spying was invasive.

I don't disagree that the CIA and
the entertainment industry are too cozy. But I also believe the left is
far too cozy with the CIA as well. (Disclosure, as Elaine's detailed
at her site, there was an attempt to recruit me for the CIA. I was
offended, this was back in college, and left the meet-up. I had not
been told this was about the CIA and really hadn't been told anything by
the professor who arranged the lunch. The professor, by the way, is
still a big name today and sometimes I think I'll out him here before he
dies and sometimes I think I'll just wait until he dies and all the
left periodicals have enshrined him to write a piece here called "When
___ Helped Try To Recruit Me For The CIA?" For now, his image is
semi-safe.) But I think Rampall's an idiot and always has been. And
sentences like the following don't make me re-think that judgment:

There’s a good reason why the spies who dupe us with propaganda
disguised as mass entertainment haven’t been played in onscreen dramas
by, say, Jerry Lewis, Karl Malden or Melissa McCarthy.

Jerry
Lewis hasn't appeared in many dramas period, has he? Nor has Melissa.
You're kind of stacking the deck aren't you? Mike Myers has played
Austin Powers. I don't see how that acted as a recruiting poster for
anything but time machines. Equally true Elliott Gould and Donald
Sutherland starred in S*P*Y*S in 1974 and weren't trying to recruit. Robert Redford played a spy in 1975's Three Days of the Condor, 1992's Sneakers, 2001's Spy Game.
I don't know anyone who would accuse any of the three of attempting to
take part in pro-CIA propaganda. Spies have been a staple of film since
its inception. If Rampell has a charge to make, he should make it. I
don't care if he backs it up or not. But his awful column for The Progressive
reads like, "Here I will name the names of a lot of performers I don't
like and ignore the ones I do -- like Redford -- while pretending I'm
just appalled by CIA on film." And let's remember that Bond isn't in
the US in most features so he's not working with CIA agents in most
films. Being British, he is, of course, not a CIA agent. By the time
Rampell's typing -- I'm not joking -- "La La Land," there's really no
reason to even pretend to take him seriously. Yes, Jiminy Glick calls
it that. But Jimney Glick is a hilarious character created by Martin Short.

The increasingly laughable Progressive has
plenty of time for the Academy Awards -- even an uninformed audio
commentary -- but they can't mention Bradley Manning. They couldn't
last week before the protests and they can't now after the protests.

But others did cover the protests that took place over the weekend. Anna Leach (Gay Star News) reports, "Rallies in 70 cities around the world marked the 1,000 day that Bradley
Manning, the gay US soldier who allegedly released hundreds of thousands
of confidential army documents to Wikileaks, has been held in prison by
the American government." The Voice of Russia notes that rallies took place in the "US, UK, Canada, across Europe, and as reaching as far as South Korea and Australia." David Lin (Washington Square News) explains,
"On Tuesday in Fort Meade, Md., a judge will decide whether to dismiss
the Manning case based on lack of speedy trial." In an opinion piece, Erin Niemela (Las Vegas Informer) argues, "Give Bradley Manning his due process – that’s the least of what he
deserves. Better yet, free him. Show the world that America stands for
accountability, integrity, and human rights. Unlike depriving a person
of life, liberty, or property without due process of law, whistleblowing
is not, and should not be, a crime."

Monday April 5,
2010, WikiLeaks released US
military video of a July 12, 2007 assault in Iraq. 12 people were
killed in the assault including two Reuters journalists Namie Noor-Eldeen and
Saeed Chmagh. Monday June 7,
2010, the US military announced that they had arrested Bradley
Manning and he stood accused of being the leaker of the video. Leila Fadel
(Washington Post) reported in August 2010 that Manning had
been charged -- "two charges under the Uniform Code of Military Justice. The
first encompasses four counts of violating Army regulations by transferring
classified information to his personal computer between November and May and
adding unauthorized software to a classified computer system. The second
comprises eight counts of violating federal laws governing the handling of
classified information." In March, 2011, David S. Cloud
(Los Angeles Times) reported
that the military has added 22 additional counts to the charges including one
that could be seen as "aiding the enemy" which could result in the death penalty
if convicted. The Article 32 hearing took place in December. At the start of
this year, there was an Article 32 hearing and, February 3rd, it was announced
that the government would be moving forward with a court-martial. Bradley has
yet to enter a plea and has neither affirmed that he is the leaker nor denied
it. The court-martial was supposed to begin before the November 2012 election but it was
postponed until after the election so that Barack wouldn't have to run on a
record of his actual actions. Independent.ie adds, "A court martial is set to be held in June at Ford Meade in Maryland,
with supporters treating him as a hero, but opponents describing him as a
traitor."

Liisa Wale (Arizona Community Press) reports on a local rally (text and photos) noting:Here in Arizona rallies in support of Manning where held in Tempe and
Tucson. The Tempe rally took place at the corner of Mill and University
following the Local to Global Forum on Saturday. There was chanting
“Free Bradley Manning” and some horn honking by passing traffic. It
was a spirited rally and provided an opportunity to educate and provide
updates to those that stopped to talk.

Woman
1: The only thing that Bradley Manning has done is to tell the American
people the truth about our wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. And we do not
consider that a crime. It is not a crime to expose War Crimes. We
think the people who did those War Crimes are the ones who should be in
jail, not Bradley Manning.

Man 1: So the point is we have to
begin a campaign and we've been doing that for the last several months
starting last summer to call on the President of the United States --
who has the authority to do so under Article II, Section II of the
Constitution -- to pardon Bradley Manning. Now he could do it today.
The reality is, no, it's not going to happen. But he can do it on his
own authority as the President of the United States.

Justin
D'Addario: This is Justin D'Addario. I'll make this short and sweet. I
was in the US Army for 3 years and four months. I served in Iraq and
Afghanistan. I am telling you right now, Bradley Manning speaks the
truth. Things happened over there. It's not like a war zone at all,
it's more like a police state. My job over there was to look for IEDs,
to look for roadside bombs. They told us always have your eyes open,
always be on the lookout for things that might hurt you. I feel like I
was the only one over there who really had my eyes open. Everybody
else says, 'Oh, we're over there to fight for our freedoms.' But the
people taking away our freedoms are not the ones over there, they're the
ones right here. Free Bradley Manning!

Male Veteran: You
know it's my obligation as a veteran. I swore to uphold the
Constitution from all enemies -- foreign and domestic. As far as I'm
concerned, the people keeping Bradley Manning in jail are a domestic
enemy. But I'm saying this stuff. I know what I saw over there.

[. . .]

Man
2: He's like the Daniel Ellsberg of our time and he's certainly let us
know information that we need to know about the conduct in the war in
Iraq.

Woman 2: And so we've got to stand up for Bradley Manning
because he stood up for the truth and this is the 1000th day that he's
been in jail now with no trial. And his trial won't be until June. But
we certainly hope that they don't put him away for life like they're
trying to.

About Me

I'm a black working mother. I love to laugh and between work and raising kids, I need a good laugh. I'm also a community member of The Common Ills. Shout outs to any Common Ills community members stopping by. Big shout out to C.I. for all the help getting this started. I am not married to Thomas Friedman, credit me with better taste, please. This site is a parody.